Queer Conceptions: January 2013 - Page 15

[esenbee2]

sphinxy -I LOLed at your dream. I was always afraid of removing it all while checking... I had so little to begin with!

[scorpioma]

LOL to Sphinxy's dream! Amazing! That is epic...

Got my + OPK today at 10:30am, so insemination tonight and or tomorrow. Tonight is probably safer, yeah? KD is flexible... Which would YOU do? Tonight, tomorrow morning, or tomorrow night? Lol.

Darcy, some of us order internet cheap OPK strips, and then confirm with Clear Blue, which is MUCH cheaper. Check http://saveontests.com, which is where we get ours.

Anyways, I TOTALLY feel you on the long cycle, it is day 22 for me and I JUST got the +OPK- what the heck?! All we can do is chase down this little egg!

sotohana, how are you hanging in?

granite, UGH, I am sorry that egg escaped without you at the parade!  When do you start clomid? Any sense of peace at this point or jus frustration?

[DarcySD]

Scorpioma - I just got my smiley face this morning. Trying to confirm with the test below b/c my clinic says the smiley comes early.   

Would you call that a positive?  ETA - Thanks for the info on the cheap tests. For some reason I am totally reliant on the smiley ones and have to use those because they turn positive early and I am that much of a control freak and want the heads up. 

Sphinxy - What a great dream!! 

[scorpioma]

YAY DARCY!

In my opinion, that is DEFINITELY a positive! When are you scheduled for insemination?

Weird, I always thought the cheap strips are more sensitive than digital...

I will have to look into that! 

Anyways, YAY. +OPKs always make me feel so much less stressed, congrats!

[sotohana]

Granite- sending you hugs. So sorry you missed your O. :(

Sphinxy- that's a freaky dream! lol!

Darcy- Yay for your positive OPK!

Scorpioma- So happy you are in the TWW and offically got your positive OPK! I have good feelings for you this cycle.

AFM- doing okay today. Still no period, but my temp did drop a bit more and I'm getting some leg cramps, which are usually a tell tale sign of the first day of my period. Though...I do usually get them after I've started flow. So, I don't really know anything. I've been having the hardest time sleeping because I'm so anxious to temp that my temps have been really inaccurate, I'm afraid. Do any of you know if I could take a natural sleep aid and if it would affect my BBT? I'm considering that for the next few days so I don't drive myself up the wall. Also, are there any natural sleep aids you might recommend?

[Sphinxy]

soto - In my opinion, the benefits of getting some good sleep far outweigh the potential affects on BBT charting. I also struggle with some TTC anxiety/sleeplessness around insem and testing times. If I were you, I would take some melatonin tonight. My understanding is that it has no affect on implantation. 

darcy - I agree, definitely a positive, especially if accompanied by a smiley face. Yay!! When does this mean you will insem?

scorpio      

[esenbee2]

Darcy - I would say that is a positive OPK.

scorpioma -Are you able to insem twice?  I would go with tonight and tomorrow night.  If you can only do it once, I might go with tomorrow morning.  What does your chart tell you?  How long after do you have a temp spike?  For me, I O'd overnight after my positive OPK in the afternoon.  But from I can tell from articles and such, that is not what the majority of women are like.  I am glad I forewent what all of the articles said, especially about younger women like myself and we insem-ed when we did, because we nailed the timing ;) 

[redrockband]

Darcy: I would call that positive. I don't think I've ever had one that dark. 

[DarcySD]

Thanks everyone for your input. I made two appointments one for tomorrow at 2:15 and one for Thursday at 9am. Unfortunately I can only do one insem so I am going to see how my temp looks tomorrow. 2:15 would be 31 hours after positive opk. 9am the next morning would be 50 hours after positive opk. The last time I inseminated at 30 hours after positive opk I didn't ovulate until the next day and didn't get a temp rise until the day after that. I am going to sleep on it tonight and see how I feel tomorrrow. 50 hours just sounds so late...

[escher]

Hi Everyone,

Scorpioma: We're using a WTBK donor from a bank. We would have loved to use a KD, but we just didn't have a good candidate for the position. We're lucky to be in touch with a number of the donor sibs and their moms, so it is as good as it can be without a KD. Hooray for your positive opk! With KD I would probably do tonight since the fresh stuff can live for a while. Can you do tonight and tomorrow night or is that not possible?

Sotohana: I'm keeping my fingers firmly crossed for a more delightful test result for you on Friday! I am seriously impressed that you're willing to throw a baby shower while TTC. I hope it is fun!

2JusticeMamas: What kind of cleanse are you planning to do? It's great that your DW is becoming so invested in the process. I think it is easier to survive TTC if both partners are really into it. We loved working with our homebirth midwives and plan to work with them again (even though we had an unusual emergency transfer during our last birth!).

Granite: I'm so sorry that you missed the O.

Lea: It sounds like you are much better at waiting than I am if you're planning to wait until 13dpo to test. Impressive patience!

Twomommyfamily: Are you doing general yoga or do you have some kind of special fertility practice?

Lindsey: I don't remember: when are you getting betas? That baby cocoon is adorable. A friend knit us a baby sleep sack like this that was surprisingly useful (and cute!) early on.

Darcy: That looks positive to me! Good luck with getting perfect timing!

Sphinxy: That is a hilarious dream.

AFU: CD6. We missed her O last cycle (we're pretty sure we just started testing too late), so we'll probably start opks in a couple of days. So far we haven't been thinking about it too much, but I know that will change when we're closer to O and will likely change even more once we're in the TWW. What do you all do to try to keep your stress level low?

[lizbian]

sphinxy - funny dream, it's amazing what the sub conscious does eh. I have been told off by the DW - she no longer wants to hear anything about CM & especially not the different types as it makes her want to vomit you can be sure that I'll just drop it into conversation at regular intervals now

Darcey & Scorp good luck girlies

The IVF clinic we'll use (if the home insem doesn't work) have an annual get together where you can take your kids so they can speak to others in the same situation which I think is a great idea & we'll deffo do if we're still on this side of the world.

[Twomommyfamily]

Hi all, I'm curious to hear your response to escher's question about how to keep the stress level down. I'm anxious! DP and I are pretty much constantly thinking about when will the RE do the iui, would if I have to test a particularly violent child during the tww (I test a new child every week), also sometimes I have to travel for work and I don't always know very far ahead of time. Anyways, just generally wondering what everyone does to manage stress.

Darcy: seems like the 31 hours is a safer bet than 50. But I've heard of 48 working so why not 50! I don't know but I do wish you loads of baby dust on the coming days!

Sphinxy: I loved your dream! Oh that precious EWCM!

Scorpioma: I agree with Esenbee, if KD doesn't mind then insem both tonight and tomorrow night! It won't hurt, right? Have I mentioned how awesome it is that you have a KD?!

Granite and Escher: I've practiced ashtanga yoga for several years but I stopped over a year ago. It felt like the opposite of a fertility supporting practice because its so rigorous. Now I practice at home and for Xmas my sister got me a DVD set called "Restoring Fertility" it has different practices for the 4 phases: menstrual, follicular, ovulation, and luteal. I like it. It's relaxing with an emphasis on restorative poses and bringing awareness to the uterus on ovaries. I also have a Brenda Strong Yoga for Fertility DVD that's nice too.
Edited by Twomommyfamily - 1/15/13 at 2:59pm

[scorpioma]

whatever. Lizbian, tell DW that CM is SEXY!

*insemination tonight and if temp. doesn't jump in the morning, again tomorrow, escher. 

[Friederike]

Good luck for tonight then Scorpio!

The stress level question - I simply run a lot. It's really cold and snowy outside so perfect conditions for contemplative long jogs. And if I am particularly agitated and running isn't enough I either play some loud songs on the guitar with singing on top of my lungs and off- key or I play the drums. Might also resort to cooking or cleaning as stress reducer but those are less likely. And I am knitting a huge baby blanket that I am going to felt in the washer later.

[Sphinxy]

escher - Regarding things to keep the stress at bay while waiting to O... I really tried to take to heart the keys to a fertile lifestyle that are mentioned in the Brill book, they became a bit of a mantra for me after BFN #2: Food, Sex, Exercise, and Sleep. So, I try to eat clean foods, orgasm at least once a day, exercise about every other day, and get at least 7 hours of sleep per night. The exercise had been a struggle for me because after my first insem I completely fell out of my routine, and then was having trouble feeling motivated to get back into it after the first BFN. But good sleep is hard to come by if I don't exercise, and lack of both can let my nervous energy wreak havoc. All four really help the body feel at its best, and when the body feels good it's easier for the mind to feel good. I'm sure it also helps that I know more now about what to expect, but this has by far been my easiest time waiting to O yet. Oh, also, this is my first cycle without any other potentially disruptive plans around my possible insemination days (like travel). So, I would suggest looking at your calendar and planning to be flexible with your schedule, kind of taking it as a given that any plans around those days are subject to change. 

[lizbian]

twomommyfamily re stress levels I've always exercised. I get grumpy when I don't exercise for more than a day & it helps my mood, sleep etc.

[scorpioma]

from tonight.

KD: "I am just really worried that it isn't enough... Like that it's less than last month!"

DP: "No, I think it's actually quite a bit more than last month, and it's plenty! We measure it when it is in the syringe."

:crickets:

DP: "Well, Sarah baked you some cookies, I know it's not much of a thank you, but here you go!"

KD: "Why thank you..."

[scorpioma]

And twomommyfamily, yoga is perfect! And exercise, lots, and talking/processing - and planning helps me calm down during ttc/insem. stress.

[chortles]

Orgasm once a day? Damn - no wonder that Brill book is sold out everywhere!

Scorpioma - good luck tonight! I love the "awkward conversations" from sperm to cookies in less than 14 words!

[Sphinxy]

chortles - well, I think Brill's recommendation was like four times a week, but I'm an over-achiever!

scorp - OMG, thank you for sharing the next installment of the SNL sketch - love it!!